


Unto the Shadows I give my brother

by BeneathAScorpionSky



Series: Cyberverse drabbles [5]
Category: Transformers - All Media Types, Transformers: Cyberverse
Genre: :(, A purple jet is sad? Whirl is the only answer., Gen, Innermost Energon, Skywarp is sad, Starscream and Thundercracker were her brothers, They never gave us a map of who got what so Vos is on the Autobot side, they're dead now
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2020-03-04
Updated: 2020-03-04
Packaged: 2021-02-23 09:35:47
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 1,138
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/23009425
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/BeneathAScorpionSky/pseuds/BeneathAScorpionSky
Summary: Skywarp returns to a ruined Vos to say goodbye
Relationships: Skywarp & Starscream & Thundercracker, Whirl & Skywarp
Series: Cyberverse drabbles [5]
Series URL: https://archiveofourown.org/series/1647748
Comments: 6
Kudos: 33





	Unto the Shadows I give my brother

The wall was a bold statement.

There was no arguing that it marked clearly the division between Autobot and Decepticon territory.

But.

It didn't actually do a very good job of keeping anybody on their assigned side, it could be vaulted over or tunneled under and to the seeker soaring high above through the night sky the orange ribbon far below was hardly any more than a joke.

Vos had been allocated to the Autobots during the split and still laid in ruins.

Hardly surprising considering the minority of seekers in the Autobot ranks, but still as she came upon her broken city made pale in the light of the moons, Skywarp's spark still ached.

She circled the bones of her ancient home three times taking in the sight of the gutted buildings and the winking of the light glittering on broken glass in empty windows before transforming and alighting on the southern edge.

She felt like she was little more than a lost specter as she threaded her way through the debris towards the entrance of the cavern that led down to the Allspark, the cavern she'd come stumbling out of with unsteady feet and wide eyes into the sunlight, her brothers at her side. She stopped at the ragged mouth, eyes closed and shoulders tight as she tried to recapture just a flicker of that feeling, the joy of being new, the thrill of companionship. Her wings arched up as she strained to remember, then sank as she gave up.

Skywarp reached into her subspace and began to withdraw the vials of innermost Energon she'd prepared when the quiet was broken by the clatter of metal on metal.

Skywarp spun, null rays warming as she aimed towards the sound.

"Uhhhhh," a single large yellow eye blinked at her "You're not supposed to be here."

Skywarp lowered her arms as she realized the helicopter didn't have any of his own weapons online "You going to make me leave?"

He squinted at her, claw tapping together thoughtfully "No. But I gotta escort you back over the border when you're done."

"Fair enough," Skywarp agreed "I won't be long."

He bobbed his cylindrical head and skittered a bit closer, but kept a respectful distance. Respect for her grief or respect for her rays, Skywarp didn't know and didn't care. She turned again towards the cavern and pulled out the two gleaming vials.

There used to be words, there used to be rites, chants and songs rooted in the past.The tradition was meant to bring comfort to broken trines and a semblance of stability in times of turbulence. Skywarp had never bothered to learn any of them, had never expected to live long enough to ever need them. In all the years of chaos and war she had never thought she'd be the only one left.

It was never supposed to be her.

One, two, three deep breaths and she stepped into the shadow, the only light from the vials she clutched to her chest. Glass and crystal crunched beneath her feet, remnants of the parting gifts from others who like her had wanted to give some token of farewell. She knelt in front of a small flat stone and brushed it free of shards before setting her two offerings upon it.

She stared at the two glasses side by side for a long moment, each breath a little heavier than the last before she stood.

"Goodbye," She said into the shadows "Starscream, Thundercracker."

Then, every inch of her shaking, trembling as she tried to suppress her sobs, Skywarp turned, committing her brothers back to the embrace of the Allspark.

She made it back to the moonlight and the gangling shadow of the Autobot before her knees gave out. She fell with a resounding clang as she pressed a wail into the palms of her hands and she shook as the tears stained her face. She could hear the sound of the Autobot shuffling awkwardly on his feet but the harder she tried to pull herself together the more Skywarp could feel herself losing it.

And all of a sudden she snapped.

The glitch only lasted a split second but it still hurt like a knife to the spark and the Autobot startled and made a squawking noise. The aftershocks shook through her and Skywarp knew she must look like something out of a nightmare as her whole frame fritzed in and out of sight like an image on a broken monitor.

"Sorry," her voice was static laden and distorted and she didn't know why she was apologizing to an _A_ _utobot_ but her head and spark hurt too much for her to care much about it.

"You have a warp matrix," the helicopter said it matter of factly as he sat down next to her, crossing his awkward digitgrade legs up "It's not your fault it goes nuts when you're sad."

Skywarp choked as a laugh and a sob tried to spill out at the same time, the weird Autobot had summed it up pretty well.

She looked up as he carefully rested a claw on her shoulder "Do you need a doctor?"

"Just...need to catch my breath," Skywarp curled her legs up, trying to prop herself up a little higher.

Slowly her stuttering vents evened out and her frame settled back properly into the space it was supposed to occupy.

"So..." the Autobot said after several minutes of quiet "You ever play Cube?"

"What?"

"Y'know, Cube. It's a game where two teams chase a floating square around."

"I know what it is, no, I haven't really played it," she flapped her wings, bemused "Warp matrix remember? everyone thought I'd cheat."

"I bet I could beat you, even with the warp matrix."

Skywarp had to chuckle, if not at the arrogance then the way the Autobot puffed out his chest. She ran her hand across her face, wiping away the last of her tears "I don't play nice Autobot."

"Me either," he tilted his head "And the name's Whirl."

With a creak he scrambled up to his feet and held his claw out to her.

She took it and let him pull her up. The tears and sobs had shriveled up, leaving her feeling heavy and empty at the same time.

"I'm Skywarp," she replied "Thank you, Whirl, for letting me say goodbye."

He shrugged "You ready to go back?"

"Yeah," she mustered up what little strength she had left in her and transformed and slowly the pair made their way back towards the border.

As she passed over the thin orange line she heard chop-chop of Whirl's rotors pause and she banked around to face him.

He hovered just above the end of Autobot territory and blinked his lights as she turned "Night Skywarp."

"...Night, Whirl."


End file.
